Time moves on. That is one thing that I do know. Time most definitely moves on. My mother knew that and she taught me to make the most of every moment and, sadly, that is one thing that I have forgotten in recent years. When my winter SAD kicks in I spend my time wishing for the arrival of spring and the lighter days. I start making spring and summer plans to give me 'something to look forward to'. My Mum would tell me "You're wishing your life away Janet" and, do you know something, she would be right. I have spent a lot of winters doing just that and wasting precious moments of my life. Following a discussion with a friend a few years back who also suffers with SAD we decided that something that helps our moods is doing things we did in childhood - maybe colouring, reading a favourite book from childhood, watching a favourite childhood movie, all these things seem to help just a little.
Lately, when I have felt my mood begin to dip I have thought a lot about that. This time of year is always hard because we seem to have had a lot of sad things happen in December/January over the years. my Mum would tell me they don't happen more at this time of year, it's just that you notice them more and remember them more because of the season. If I made a record I'm sure that I'd find sad events spread evenly throughout the year - and happy ones too. Again my Mum would be right. The more I have thought about my childhood recently the more I have realised that sad things happened then too but somehow I handled them better. Why? Because I was a child and I lived in the moment. I was sad about sad events but then I moved on and enjoyed whatever was coming next. I didn't dwell. As a child if you've done something wrong you apologise and move on. As an adult you can dwell about how you made a wrong decision and who it affected. Dwelling doesn't do anybody any good. You can't change the past, but you can learn from it and use it to move forward and be better next time just as children do. You learn right through your life and you grow through it.
So my only resolution for 2024 is to take a leaf from my childhood book and live in the moment. I won't go into January thinking I must plan something for the spring/summer to give me something to look forward to. I will live in January, and in February and onwards. With a Christmas voucher I bought a 2024 Almanac to help me focus on each month. I will look at celebrations, the night sky, folklore, tide times (I live on the coast, I should know them), nature etc. I will take walks and celebrate the area in which I live and the seasonal changes about me.
Just looking at January I already have:
1) New Year's Day which is also International Self Care Day a day to think about our mental and physical health, to take some time to plan how to look after ourselves for a whole year (or maybe just one day at a time) - and when we are on top form we can look after others so we're helping them too with our necessary pauses to recharge.
2) On the 3rd and 4th January it is the peak of the Quadrantid meteor shower. You never know we may get some clear skies on one of those nights and how better to spend an evening than making a hot chocolate, wrapping up warm and going out to watch a shower in the skies.
3) 5th January is Twelfth Night - the day to take down the decorations, start the Christmas cake and read some festive poetry
4) 6th January isThe Feast of the Epiphany - for this year I intend to celebrate by reading T S Eliot's Ariel Poems and playing some Epiphany carols on my piano.
5) 17th January - this is old Twelfth Night, before the Gregorian calendar, and the date that many people still choose for wassailing. We intend to wassail the apple trees in our garden, though this year we must tell the neighbours before they wonder what on earth is going on with the clanging of pans and caterwauling in the garden.
6) 20th January - the moon visits Pleiades - the moon passes by the Pleiades star cluster, you can spot the star cluster through binoculars and you may be able to spot the moon in the same view if you have wide field binoculars. The moon will only be a week away from being full so should be very bright. How beautiful will that look?
7) 25th January - Burns Night - a night for Haggis, Neeps and Tatties, listening to Scottish music and reading Robert Burns' poetry
8) 27th/28th January Is the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch
9) 31st January is National Hot Chocolate Day - if it's a clear night wrap up warm, make a hot chocolate with all the trimmings and sit out on a garden bench and star gaze.
So January has many delights and if I add in walks, appreciating all my local borough has to offer, and making a note of seasonal vegetables and cooking with the season it will keep me busy. My Almanac tells me to make a space for each month to bring nature into the house - just like the Nature tables of my youth. I shall try to change my porch display each month, maybe nature, maybe something else, and I shall work on improving my garden, another seasonal activity. With all that and my books I should be kept very busy.
I think that I am going to enjoy living in the moment in 2024. I shall let you know at the end of January how it is going and maybe tell you some of my plans for February. I know some days I will find it hard but I will try to make myself go out and walk even on rainy days because that bit of daylight makes all the difference as, I think, will taking one day at a time. Wish me luck xx
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